‘Tolkien in Leeds Centenary’ – talk by Claire Randall

JRR Tolkien started his academic career as a Reader in English Language at Leeds University in October 1920, exactly one hundred years ago.

It is well understood how the landscapes he knew through his life contributed to those he described in his sub-creation of Middle-earth, from the rural idyll of the Sarehole he knew as a child which influenced his vision of The Shire, to the analogue of the trenches and No-Man’s Land in the Great War that he represented as the Dead Marshes, but his time in Leeds is often overlooked as an influence on his imagination.

And yet there are numerous tantalising parallels between landscapes he knew in and around Leeds and some of those he described in The Lord of the Rings.

This lecture will demonstrate these parallels with readings of the descriptive passages in Tolkien’s works and photographic landscape evidence.  For the student of Middle-earth locations and events such as Ithilien, Woody End, the Party Tree, The Wapentake at Edoras, even Lothlorien and the mysterious Amon Rudh from Beleriand in the Silmarillion can be found to bear striking resemblances to features in local landscapes that Tolkien will have known well.

Join us for an exploration into local landscape and historical features which in the leaf mould of his imagination may have contributed to inspiring some of Tolkien’s mythical landscapes.

Please Note: Social distancing rules will apply and places must be pre-booked as there is a limit on numbers.

Entrance £4.00/£3.50 members and concessions including refreshments.